Olympus TG-860 vs Panasonic LX3

Below is a in-depth overview of the Olympus TG-860 and Panasonic LX3, one being a Waterproof and the other is a Small Sensor Compact by competitors Olympus and Panasonic. There exists a sizeable gap between the resolutions of the TG-860 (16MP) and LX3 (10MP) and the TG-860 (1/2.3") and LX3 (1/1.63") feature totally different sensor sizing.

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The TG-860 was announced 6 years later than the LX3 and that is quite a large gap as far as technology is concerned. Both cameras come with different body type with the Olympus TG-860 being a Ultracompact camera and the Panasonic LX3 being a Compact camera.

Before getting straight into a thorough comparison, below is a quick summary of how the TG-860 scores vs the LX3 when it comes to portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

This is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus Stylus Tough TG-860 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3. The whole galleries are provided at Olympus TG-860 Gallery and Panasonic LX3 Gallery.

For those who are planning to lug around your camera regularly, you are going to need to consider its weight and proportions. The Olympus TG-860 provides outer dimensions of 110mm x 64mm x 28mm (4.3" x 2.5" x 1.1") with a weight of 224 grams (0.49 lbs) while the Panasonic LX3 has measurements of 109mm x 60mm x 27mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.1") along with a weight of 265 grams (0.58 lbs).

Analyze the Olympus TG-860 and Panasonic LX3 in the latest Camera with Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Take into consideration, the weight of an Interchangeable Lens Camera will vary dependant on the lens you are utilizing at that moment. Underneath is the front view size comparison of the TG-860 vs the LX3.

Taking into consideration dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the TG-860 and LX3 is 91 and 91 respectively.

Sometimes, it can be hard to visualise the gap between sensor measurements just by reading through technical specs. The photograph here may give you a clearer sense of the sensor sizes in the TG-860 and LX3.

As you have seen, both the cameras have got different megapixel count and different sensor measurements. The TG-860 using its tinier sensor will make shooting shallow DOF more difficult and the Olympus TG-860 will give you more detail with its extra 6 Megapixels. Greater resolution will also make it easier to crop images much more aggressively. The more modern TG-860 is going to have an edge with regard to sensor innovation.